Hopis Join Navajo Lawsuit Against Coal, Power Firms

Associated Press
March 4, 2000

GALLUP, NM-- The Hopi Tribe has joined the Navajo Nation in a lawsuit against
Peabody Coal Co., Southern California Edison Co. and the Salt River Project,
alleging that the coal and power companies defrauded them.
In papers filed in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., the Hopi
Tribe says it seeks "to vindicate its right to control and receive full and
fair compensation for its coal resources."
The Hopis allege that Peabody, Edison and the SRP engaged "in a scheme to
defraud and convert the money and property of the tribe through interference
with the relationship between the tribe and the United States government,"
the Gallup Independent reported Friday.
They contend the defendants "acted in concert to deliberately lure the
Hopi Tribe and the Navajo Nation into renegotiating the terms of various coal
mining leases, and then failed to negotiate in good faith."
The Hopis said they were not aware of the scheme until the Navajos filed
suit last year.
Navajo President Kelsey Begaye said he welcomed the Hopi participation.
The two tribes have been tangled in a land dispute for more than a century,
but their joint coal leases are a common interest, and the lawsuit could
bring both tribes additional money.
"The Navajo Nation looks forward to standing together with the Hopi Tribe
to obtain compensation for those damages to both our peoples," Begaye said.